Heat exchanger rotor and method for making same



Dec. 17, 1968 p, COBB 3,416,595

HEAT EXCHANGER ROTOR AND METHOD FOR MAKING SAME Filed Oct. 20. 1966 5 Sheets-Sheet 1 B I': [1 32 I I 1 72 mi l Y 54 U M 2 4 56 f2? Dec. 17, 1968 D. A. COBB 3,416,595

HEAT EXCHANGER ROTOR AND METHOD FOR MAKING SAME Filed Oct. 20, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 FIG. 3. 34 I6 IN VENTOP DAVID A. COBB ATTY Dec. 17, 19 8 D. A. COBB 3,416,595 HEAT EXCHANGER ROTOR AND METHOD FOR MAKING SAME Filed Oct. 20, 1966 v 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 /NVEN TOR DAVID A. COBB Z/QM ATTY

United States Patent 3,416,595 HEAT EXCHANGER ROTOR AND METHOD FOR MAKING SAME David A. Cobb, Hazelcrest, Ill., assignor to International Harvester Company, Chicago, 11]., a corporation of Delaware Filed Oct. 20, 1966, Ser. No. 588,186 8 Claims. (Cl. 165-8) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A rigid reinforced rotor or cage for a rotary regenerator is provided with slots in its circumference for inserting the matix plates in assembly. The rigid cage is formed by the spacers between the rings holding the matrix plates at each end and by the separator plates which connect and space the respective spacers of each rotor end.

This invention relates to the construction of a rotatable rigid drum for a rotary heat exchanger.

From the prior art it is known that matrix plates or elements of a rotatable heat exchanger are secured to a cage. These cages may comprise a pair of machined annular rings secured in axial spaced relation by a plurality of longitudinally extending spacer bars. The matrix elements and spacer bars and annular rings then are secured together by screws or the like. In my US. Patent No. 3,213,526 for Method of Assembling a Heat Exchanger Rotor issued October 26, 1965 I disclosed an improved rotor construction using formed sheet metal parts which were welded together to form a rigid drum structure. The invention herein constitutes a further improvement in rotor drum construction and method of assembly.

An object of the present invention is to provide a light, rigid heat exchanger rotor construction which is inexpensive to manufacture.

Another object of this invention is to provide an improved heat exchanger rotor construction in which the parts thereof are constructed to promote ease of assembly.

The above and other objects and advantages of the invention will be more readily apparent when read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIGURE 1 is a partial top view, partly broken away, illustrating the assembled rotary heat exchanger drum of this invention;

FIGURE 2 is a sectional view in elevation taken along the line 2-2 of FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a partial sectional view in elevation taken along the line 33 of FIGURE 2 showing a separator plate welded to spacer elements at each end of the drum;

FIGURE 4 is a view in perspective showing inner and outer ring members connected by spacer bars and illustrating openings in the inner ring member for receiving matrix elements therethrough;

FIGURE 5 is a partial perspective view of the heat exchanger drum showing how the elements of the matrix are assembled into the drum structure;

FIGURE 6 is a perspective view of part of a separator plate;

FIGURE 7 is a pertial view in elevation of the top end of a corrugated matrix element;

FIGURE 8 is an end view of the portion of the matrix element of FIGURE 7;

FIGURE 9 is a partial view in elevation of a spacer plate which may be inserted between adjacent matrix elements;

FIGURE 10 is a view in perspective showing an outer ring member with openings for receiving matrix elements therethrough;

ice

FIGURE 11 is a view in perspective showing inner and outer ring members with openings therein for receiving matrix elements therethrough.

Referring now to the drawings wherein like reference characters in the different views identify identical parts, the rotary drum construction embodying the invention is indicated generally by the numeral 10. This drum construction comprises end ring means including two pairs 12 and 14 of end ring members disposed at opposite ends of the drum, a plurality of separator plates 16 connecting the end ring members, a plurality of matrix elements 18, upper annular closure member 20, lower annular closure member 22 and a ring gear 24.

Referring to FIGURE 2 it will be seen that the pair 12 of end ring members comprises an inner and outer end ring member 26 and 28 respectively and the pair 14 comprises inner and outer end ring members 30 and 32 respectively. The pair I12 or the individual ring members 26 or 28 may sometimes be referred to as the upper end ring members for convenience of description, and the end ring members 30 and 32 as the lower end ring members. Each of the end ring members are formed in a substantially L-shaped cross section. The inner end ring member 26 is formed with an axially extending flange portion 26a and a radially outwardly extending flange portion 26b integral with the flange portion 26a and extending substantially at right angles thereto. The inner ring member 30 is of the same construction with flange portions 30a and 30b formed in the same manner. Outer ring member 28 is formed with an axially extending flange portion 28:: and a radially inwardly extending flange portion 28b integral with the flange portion 28a and extending substantially at right angles thereto. The outer ring member 32 is of the same construction as ring member 28 with flange portions 32a and 32b formed in the same manner.

The rings 26 and 30 are of lesser diameter than the rings 28 and 32. Rings 26 and 28 are disposed in concentric relation, and rings 30 and 32. are disposed in concentric relation. Rings 26 and 30 are of the same diameter and are disposed in axially spaced relation with respect to each other. Rings 28 and 32 are of the same diameter and are disposed in axially spaced relation with respect to each other.

The inner and outer ring members 26 and 28 are connected in their concentrically disposed relation by a plurality of spacer members 34. These spacer members 34 may be elongated metal strip members. They are of equal length and are circumferentially spaced. They are attached at the outer edges of the axially extending flanges 26a and 28a of the inner and outer ring members by suitable means such as by welding.

The inner and outer rings members 30 and 32 are connected in a similar manner by a plurality of spacer members 36 which are similar to spacer members 34. The spacer members 36 are attached to the outer edges of the axially extending flanges 30a and 32a.

As here shown there are eight spacer members 34 and eight spacer members 36. This number may be varied as may be necessary.

The substantially rectangular-shaped separator plates 16 extend longitudinally and parallel to the axis of the drum 10 to connect the end ring pairs 12 and 14 to form a cage 37 for the matrix elements 18. The separator plates are disposed radially and are attached at 'one end to spacer members 34 and at the other to spacer members 36 by suitable means such as welding or brazing as seen in FIG URE 3. Cut-out portions 38 are formed at the four corners of each separator plate 16 to accommodate the inner and outer end ring members as seen in FIGURE 2. The plurality of separator plates 16 add strength and rigidity to the cage construction defined by the assembly of the end ring members and separator plates. In this assembled relationship the cage 37 actually becomes divided into a plurality of sectors. It will be observed from FIGURE 6 that the separator plates are slightly tapered, the thicker portion at the left being that portion which will be at the outside of the drum.

The matrix elements 18 each comprise a substantially rectangular corrugated plate having cut-out portions 40 formed at the corners thereof. Part of these cutout portions define slots or grooves 42 formed therein to accommodate the flanges 26b, 28b, 30b and 32b of the end ring members as seen in FIGURE 2. These flanges support the matrix elements 18 against longitudinal or axial movement in the drum assembly. A plurality of matrix elements 18 are positioned between each of the separator plates 16. Other types of conventional matrices such as a wire mesh matrix may be employed as well as the type of matrix described herein.

Spacer plates 19 which are inserted between adjacent matrix elements 18 in the drum construction each comprise a substantially thin flat rectangular plate having the same outline as the matrix elements 18. The spacer plates 19 have cut-out portions 40a similar to cut-out portions 40 formed at the corners thereof as shown in FIGURE 9. Grooves 42a are formed in the spacer plates 19 in the same relative positions as the grooves 42 in the matrix elements 18.

The upper closure member 20 has an annular face portion 44 with depending flanges 46 and 48. The closure member is for-med so that in the drum construction it will fit over the ring members 26 and '28 and abut against the ends of the spacer plates defined by the cut-out portions 40a and grooves 42a.

The lower closure member 22 is disposed at the other end of the drum construction in axially spaced relation with upper closure member 20. Closure member 22 has an annular face portion 50 with depending flanges 52 and 54. A recess 56 in the outer periphery of closure member 22 is defined by axially extending flange portion 58 and radially extending flange portion 60 connected to each other and respectively to annular face portion 50 and depending flange 54. The recess 56 accommodates ring gear 24 which is secured to the flanges 58 and 60 by suitable means such as welding or brazing. The ring gear 24 provides the means through which the drum is rotated.

As indicated in my U.S. Patent 3,213,526 parts of the drum construction, such as the inner and outer ring members and the spacer and matrix plates, may be conveniently formed from sheet metal by a stamping operation. The additional parts disclosed herein, such as the spacer member 34 and 36 and the separator plates 16, may also be formed from. sheet metal by similar stamping operations.

It will be observed from FIGURES 4 and 5 that the inner end ring member 26 has openings in the form of a pair of connecting slots 62 and 64 formed respectively in flange portions 26a and 26b thereof. The slots 62 extend axially and the slots 64 extend radially. One pair of slots 62 and 64 is positioned between each pair of adjacent separator plates 16. Similar pairs of slots are formed in the lower inner end ring member 30 and are disposed axially opposite the slots 62 and 64. These slots are used during the assembly of the heat exchanger drum as loadin g slots as will be hereinafter described in more detail and represent one of the important features of this invention. They are important because they make possible an improved means of assembly of the drum construction. The method of assembling the drum 10 employing the above mentioned components will now be described.

First a pair of inner and outer ring members 26 and 28 are connected together in a concentrically disposed manner by connecting the spacer members 34 therebetween by suitable means such as welding or brazing, for example. Other means than the spacer members 34 could be used.

Similarly lower inner and outer ring members 30 and 32 are connected together by spacer members 36. Separator plates 16 may then be joined by welding or brazing to axially opposed spacer members 34 and 36 to form the drum cage 37. At this point it will be observed from FIG- URES 2 and 5 that the inner and outer ring members 26 and 28 fit in the cutout portions 38 of the separator plates 16. Similar cut-out portions 38 at the other end of the separator plates 16 receive the inner and outer ring members 30 and 32.

Now matrix elements 18 and spacer plates 19 are moved longitudinally into the center of the drum cage. Through the loading slots 62 and 64 in the inner ring member 26 the matrix elements 18 and spacer plates 19 are moved edgewise, as seen in FIGURE 5, one by one into the area between a pair of adjacent separator plates 16. In moving through slots 62 and 64 each element is moved radially outwardly until radially outermost groove 42 of matrix element 18 slides over flange 28b of outer ring member 28. The lower end of matrix element 18 is simultaneously moved through comparable slots in lower inner ring member 30 until lower groove =42 of matrix element 18 slides overflange 30b of lower inner ring member 30. Then the matrix element is moved circumferentially along the support flanges 26b, 28b, 30b and 32b of the inner and outer end ring members. The same process is followed for inserting the spacer plates 19 through the loading slots 62 and 64 since they are of exactly the same outline as the matrix elements 18. A matrix element 18 and spacer plate 19 are alternately loaded through the slots so that in the final assembly a spacer plate will be between each adjacent matrix element. Matrix elements 18 and spacer plates are inserted in each sector until the sector is filled. The same process is repeated to insert matrix elements and spacer plates into each of the sectors here shown as eight in number. The upper and lower closure members 20 and 22 are then fitted over the end ring members and welded into place thereon by welds as shown, for example, at 66, 68, and 72.

The ring gear 24 may be secured to the closure member 22 either before or after the member 22 is fitted into position in the assembly.

Thus there results an integral drum construction 10 wherein end ring means 12 and 14 and separator plates 16 are first assembled to form a drum cage into which matrix elements and spacer plates are inserted by a novel assembly method and to which are finally added closure members to complete the drum construction.

As previously indicated, the plurality of loading slots 62 and 64 formed in the inner end ring members 26 and 30 provide an easy and efiicient means for assembling the matrix elements 18 into the drum construction. FIGURES l0 and 11 show alternative arrangements for facilitating the insertion of the matrix elements into the assembly.

In FIGURE 10 there is shown a slot formation in the outer and ring member to be used for inserting the matrix elements into the drum construction. Axially extending slot 74 is formed in axially extending flange portion 28a and joins radially extending slot 76 formed in radially extending flange portion 28b. A corresponding slot formation exists in the lower outer end ring member 32. With this arrangement it is obvious that the matrix elements and spacer plates may be inserted radially into the assembly from the outside of the cage rather than from the inside. As with slots 6264 a plurality of slot pairs 7476 are circumferentially spaced in the outer ring members 28 and 32, there being at least one slot pair in each of the ring members 28 and 32 for each sector formed by separator plates 16.

In FIGURE 11 is shown another alternative slot arrangement in the end ring means for receiving the matrix elements 18 into the drum construction. In this arrangement the matrix elements and spacer plates are moved axially and inserted endwise into the cage 37. As seen in FIGURE 11 radially extending flange 26b of inner ring 26 and radially extending fiange 28b of outer ring 28 have loading slots or grooves 78 and 80 respectively formed the-rein. Lower inner and outer ring members 30 and 32 would have corresponding slots formed therein so that a matrix element 18 and spacer plate 19 may be inserted endwise through the slots 78 and 80 into the cage along a line parallel to the axis of cage and through the corresponding slots '78 and 80 in the lower end ring members 30 and 32 and then moved circumferentially on the support flanges 26b, 28b, 30b and 32b of the end ring members. Just as with slot pairs 6264 and 74-76 at least one pair of slots 78-80 would be required in each end ring means between each pair of adjacent separator plates 16.

Thus whichever slot arrangement alternative is used it contributes to ease of assembly of the drum construction. Since the matrix elements can be packed into the cage structure with the convenient loading slot arrangement, they can be loosely supported on the flanges of the ring members. Welding the matrix elements to the ring members is not necessary. It will be appreciated that the various loading slots described must be at least as wide as the matrix elements and spacer plates but may be considerably wider as long as the rigidity of the cage structure is not adversely affected.

While certain embodiments of the invention have been specifically disclosed, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited thereto as other variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art and the invention is to be given its fullest possible interpretation within the terms of the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In a rotatable substantially cylindrical heat exchanger drum assembly the combination comprising:

end ring means including a first and second pair of inner and outer concentrically disposed end ring members, said first and second pairs being disposed at each end of the drum assembly;

means connecting and spacing said inner and outer end ring members of each pair;

means interconnecting said first and second pairs of end ring members;

opening means formed in said end ring members for receiving matrix elements therethrough during assembly of the drum.

2. The combination of claim 1 wherein said opening means comprises slot means formed in said inner ring members.

3. The combination of claim 1 wherein said opening means comprises slot means formed in said outer ring members.

4. The combination of claim 1 wherein said opening means comprises slot means formed in both said inner and outer ring members.

5. The combination of claim 1 wherein said means connecting said inner and outer ring members comprises a plurality of spacer members, and

said means interconnecting said first and second pairs of end ring members comprises a plurality of circumferentially spaced separator plates.

6. The combination of claim 5 wherein said separator plates are fixed to said spacer members.

7. The combination of claim 5 including matrix elements supported on said end ring members,

and wherein said opening means comprises slot means formed in said end ring members between each of said separator plates.

8. The combination of claim 1 wherein said means connecting said inner and outer ring members comprises a plurality of spacer members,

said means interconnecting said first and second pairs or" end ring members comprises a plurality of circumferentially spaced separator plates,

said opening means comprises slot means formed in said end ring members between each of said separator plates, and further including matrix elements supported on said end ring members.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,843,252 2/1932 Toensfeldt -7 2,937,010 5/1960 Collrnan et a1 1651O 3,213,526 10/1965 Cobb 165-10 X ROBERT A. OLEARY, Primairy Examiner. ALBERT W. DAVIS, Assistant Examiner.

U.S. Cl. X.R. 1651O 

